Just A Little Advice
by QueenTigris
Summary: Robin goes to Raven for advice on what to do to get Star to notice him. A mysterious wanderer comes to town, and that's not all that comes to town. The drama of Raven's past, the love of Robin and Starfire, and the tragedy and danger of Raven's future...
1. Prologue: Advice

A/N: My first TT fic. I've been thinking about a story for this section for a while... This one I may just leave as a one shot, with a little Robin/Starfire. But I MAY decide to turn it into a fully fledged fanfic that would have both Robin/Starfire and Raven/OC. It depends... Anyways, enjoy!  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans and co.  
  
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Just A Little Advice  
  
~*~  
  
It was nearly evening at Titan Tower, the day having gone by with little mishap with the exception of a bank robbery early that morning. The lowly villains had been brought to justice within minutes of the Titans' arrival; yes it was a normal, boring day. Raven was meditating on the rooftop, with quite a view of the colorful sunset, Starfire was messing around in the kitchen, and Beast Boy and Cyborg were playing gamestation.  
  
"Dude! That's no fair! I demand a rematch!" Beast Boy was complaining loudly when Robin entered the room.  
  
Cyborg grinned widely. "You're on!"  
  
Suddenly all was quiet again except for the sound effects coming from the hidden speakers and the clicking of buttons on the gamers' controllers. Beast Boy was already looking annoyed as Robin silently passed them and entered the kitchen.  
  
"Hello, Robin!" He was greeted loudly as he entered.  
  
"Hey, Starfire." Robin gave her a slightly lopsided smile as he sat down at the table. "What are you making?"  
  
Starfire hopped over to the refrigerator, over zealous as usual. "I'm making a surprise for after tonight's meal!"  
  
Warning bells went off in his head, but his face stayed impassive and he merely raised an eyebrow. "Er... what kind of surprise?"  
  
"Pudding!" was the immediate, explosively gleeful answer.  
  
Robin could feel his stomach already aching. "Uh... great, that sounds great, Starfire." He plastered a smile to his face. Robin started racking his brain for someway to get out of eating the pudding without hurting the sensitive alien's feelings. An idea struck him. "Hey, Star.... let's say we save the pudding for later, and instead go out for dinner tonight?"  
  
Starfire's face lit up immediately. "Oh, what a wonderful idea, Robin! I should love to do the feasting that is dinner outside tonight!"  
  
Robin smiled, finally, maybe he could get some alone time with her.  
  
"I shall go inform the others immediately that we are all to go out tonight!" Starfire twirled around and left her unfinished pudding on the counter, she skipped out of the kitchen.  
  
Robin's face fell. Just when he thought he had got it right...  
  
He could hear Starfire telling Cyborg and Beast Boy in the room beyond about eating outside. Again, she had misunderstood; she was now telling them they were going to eat on the rooftop. Robin sighed loudly and let his head fall onto the table.  
  
Robin stayed like that for a minute, listening to a new argument starting between Beast Boy and Cyborg that Starfire was trying to appease. He jumped up suddenly when he heard the door open behind him. He spun around, a look of surprise on his face.  
  
"Something wrong?" Raven asked dully, raising an eyebrow at his reaction.  
  
Robin was immediately embarrassed, but he didn't show it. "Oh, you just startled me."  
  
"It's easy to be startled by me." Raven said monotonously while passing him. She poured herself a cup of herbal tea; then spotted the bowl of grayish slop that was supposed to be Starfire's pudding. "We don't have to eat that, do we?"  
  
"Well, Starfire made it..." He trailed off; fearing whatever he said next would be the wrong thing to say. The best way to talk to Raven was to not talk at all, so he had learned.  
  
The cloaked girl continued to stare at the 'pudding' a moment longer. "I think I'll pass." She said, taking a sip of her tea, and left.  
  
Once she was gone, her presence was suddenly replaced with a happy-as-usual Starfire. "Robin! I must finish my pudding for tonight! I don't see any problem with eating my pudding outside instead, do you?"  
  
Robin blanched, but he couldn't resist her perpetual smile... "No, of course not. We'll just have it... outside instead." He gave her the biggest smile he could.  
  
"Wonderful!"  
  
Robin sighed and slumped in his seat once her back was turned, knowing that he'd be expecting a bad stomach ache by later that night.  
  
~*~  
  
He turned over and moaned, trying in vain to find a comfortable way to lie. As expected, he hadn't been able to make himself hurt Starfire's feelings and reject her pudding and now Robin's stomach was keeping him awake. He groaned and sat up, finally resolving it was useless. But his stomach wasn't the only think that was bothering him...  
  
The clock read 2am, too early for any of the other Titans. He yawned and got out of bed, having not bothered to remove his usual outfit last night, all he had to do was put on his combat boots and cape and Robin was out the door, in the direction of the kitchen.  
  
The kitchen was dark, and he could hardly see anything as he made his way to the refrigerator. He opened the door and took out a half-empty milk carton, yawned again and turned around. He gave a tiny yelp, too tired to yell with his surprise. Robin nearly drew a birdarang until he realized that the shadow sitting on the counter that had revealed itself with the light from the open refrigerator was not an enemy.  
  
"My, aren't we jumpy today." The shadow said in a monotone.  
  
Robin laughed nervously. "Uh... Raven... I didn't think you'd be up this late..."  
  
He edged along the wall, nervous that he might meet more surprises in the dark. Once he found the switch, he turned on the light to reveal the kitchen and Raven sitting on the counter, a cup of tea in her hands.  
  
"I can never sleep for long." She said in answer and taking a sip of her tea.  
  
Robin just nodded, he always respected other peoples' business; he had had to when he had been living with Batman. He frowned at her outfit, having never seen her wearing anything other than her cape and leotard. Raven was, as usual, dressed all in dark colors. She wore a soft-looking black turtleneck with a pair of black pants that hugged the shape of her legs; apparently this was what she slept in.  
  
Robin quickly looked away when he saw she was looking at him, her cool violet eyes emotionless yet they were saying 'It's not polite to stare.' Raven turned her attention back to her tea.  
  
He swallowed and endeavored to pass her by in order to get to the cupboard. This occurred without any further comment from either of them, as he had hoped. Annoying Raven was the last thing he wanted, for he was already tired. He took out a cup and warmed up a glass of milk in the microwave, never turning to look at his mysterious teammate until she spoke.  
  
"Starfire's pudding?"  
  
"Er, yeah."  
  
She nodded, holding her teacup in her lap. Raven cocked her head in his direction, her eyes coolly regarding him for a moment. "But is that all that is bothering you, Robin?"  
  
Robin froze before turning away from her to remove his milk from the microwave. He took a sip, hoping that she wouldn't persist. Meeting Raven unexpectedly in the middle of the night was enough to make him nervous, now she was acting against her usual character and starting a conversation.  
  
"I thought so," He heard her sigh. "You can talk to me, you know. I'm not the type to blurt other's secrets."  
  
He drank some of his milk and turned to her, wondering what she had 'thought so'. Once he was facing her, he immediately regretted turning around. Their eyes met, and Robin couldn't make himself look away.  
  
Raven studied the confusion apparent in his face before patting the counter beside her. Understanding her meaning, Robin uneasily crossed the linoleum floor and hopped up beside her.  
  
"Now, talk." She commanded.  
  
"Uh, well..." Robin started but stopped, still unsure.  
  
She sighed and set her tea cup aside. "Robin, I've been sensing that you're troubled for weeks. And it is starting to get bothersome. I meant to leave you alone about it, but apparently you have been unable to fix it yourself. And I know this isn't about Slade." She gave him a sideways look before turning to her tea again and taking a sip. Raven turned back to him. "Now, what's bothering you? Since it's now come to insomnia, I'm not going to leave it along anymore. Besides, your mind has been sending out troubled signals so loud it's even been keeping me awake."  
  
"Er, it has? Sorry about that, Raven." He said nervously, drinking more of his milk. Robin turned his head slightly to look at her, only to meet her cold stare. He shivered, even though it was a warm summer night.  
  
She raised an eyebrow and Robin squirmed. "Uh... Raven?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Can I... ask you a question? I mean... you don't have to answer it or anything; I just... uh... I don't mean to be intruding, but—"  
  
"Just ask me the question already."  
  
Robin inhaled deeply, hoping it wouldn't be his last breath. "Er... let's say there was a boy that liked you..." He started.  
  
"Okay..."  
  
Robin continued, sensing no threat in her voice so far. "Hypothetically speaking of course. And uh... what would this boy have to do to get you to notice him? As in, like, getting you to agree to go out on a date with him?" Robin tensed, waiting for the explosion.  
  
But instead, Raven just chuckled lightly. A rarity in itself. "Hm... It would likely take years of persistence and a great deal of luck and devotion. And the chances of any guy even getting me to agree to anything remotely resembling a date are just about null."  
  
"Oh." Robin slumped, disappointed. How would he ever get her attention?  
  
"But then again," Raven said quietly. "I'm not Starfire."  
  
Robin nearly jumped out of his skin at the sound of her name. "Wha— I, I never said—"  
  
"You needn't have said anything, Robin." Raven said, taking yet another sip of her tea.  
  
Robin's shoulders drooped. "Am I... that obvious?"  
  
"No." She said simply, her eyes closed. "But I could sense it." Raven opened her eyes and once again Robin felt uneasy under her gaze.  
  
"Oh." He shifted his seat on the countertop, wondering what Raven would do next.  
  
She turned fully to him, setting her teacup between them on the counter with the soft click of china against the hard surface. Once she had folded her legs comfortably on the countertop Raven spoke again. "You aren't getting anywhere by keeping it all a secret, Robin. Besides, it isn't much of a secret. I think Beast Boy and Cyborg have just about figured it out. Well... Cyborg at least. I don't think Beast Boy has the brain capacity to figure out something like this..." She gave the smallest of wry smiles, and Robin almost laughed. "But, if you want to get Starfire's attention, you are going to have to be straightforward with her."  
  
"But, what if—"  
  
"Yes, yes. What if!" She rolled her eyes. "If there were no such thing as 'what if' a lot of things could have happened differently. People wouldn't have been cowards." Raven said this more to herself than anyone else. "But," she began again, "trust me. Tell Starfire your feelings, tell her everything."  
  
"Everything?" Robin fidgeted with his now empty glass.  
  
"Yes, everything you feel for her. If you want, write a poem about it instead of talking to her if you must. That's how my boyfriend did it when he—" She stopped suddenly and coughed as a cover up.  
  
Robin almost fell off the counter. "Boyfriend? You have a boyfriend?" But he regretted that question the moment it left his lips.  
  
Raven jumped off the counter, grabbing her teacup. "That's none of your business!" She said angrily, starting for the door.  
  
"Raven, wait! I didn't mean—" Robin shut his mouth abruptly when Raven turned on her heel to face him, her eyes glowing an eerie red.  
  
He didn't dare move, and he kept his mouth firmly shut. Slowly, the glow disappeared from her eyes, but she still looked angry. "Look, just take my advice. And keep your mouth shut about my slipup, okay?"  
  
He nodded vigorously. "Of course!"  
  
Raven seemed to calm herself, and her shoulders relaxed. "Listen, I'm... not seeing him anymore, and I don't want you to bring him up again. Not ever."  
  
"Oh... so, you broke up with him?"  
  
"NO!" She screamed, her eyes glowing again and her hair going wild.  
  
Robin flinched, but she quickly calmed herself.  
  
Raven turned away and spoke quietly. "I didn't break up with him, and he didn't break up with me. He was... a warrior. At heart. We were separated in a battle, I know he isn't dead though. He's too strong for that." She looked at him over her slender shoulder. "But I couldn't stay to look for him, I had to keep running."  
  
Robin was about to ask what she had been running from, but decided against it. Besides, she had already disappeared into the shadows of the post-midnight hallway.  
  
He sighed and put away the glass before returning to his room himself. He stopped before the passage that would eventually lead to Raven's bedroom door. He smiled slightly and whispered to the shadows obscuring the hallway, "Thanks, Rae." before moving on.  
  
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A/N: Oooo... I had fun with that fic... I MIGHT make it into more than just a one shot. Depends on how popular this fic is and whether or not I can find the time to write more for it. 


	2. Fortunes

A/N: Okay, okay, I couldn't help it. I left myself too many untied strings that started irritating me and I just had to give 'em a tug.... hehe. Sooooooo.... This one shot shall now become a fully fledged fanfic. There will be some Robin/Starfire, but later on I'll be focusing more on Raven/OC. Enjoy!  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Titans and co. with the exception of..... oops! I almost told you! Too bad, you gotta wait.  
  
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Just A Little Advice  
  
Chapter 1: Fortunes  
  
~*~  
  
Raven closed the door silently and slunk across her room to her bed where she lay down with a long sigh. She stared at the shadowed ceiling for several minutes before rolling over onto her stomach, burying her face into the soft fabric of her bed sheets. All the while thinking, 'How could I have let it slip? To Robin? Starfire already knows some of it, but having one more person knowing is too much.'  
  
She sighed again and grabbed one of her pillows; pressing her cheek against it and hugging it to her chest while lying on her side. Just thinking about anything related to him brought back so many memories... Everyday she labored so hard to keep her emotions in check, she rarely allowed herself to remember him. Everyday she longed to see him, to hear him say her name, his nickname for her... 'Ravi'. He had said it meant 'sun' or something in another language, though why he related her to the sun was beyond her.  
  
She sighed forlornly and sat up, throwing away the pillow. Raven cast her eyes over her room, searching for something else to occupy her mind. Her eyes settled on a small, golden rectangular box in her bookcase, decorated much like a jewelry box. She outstretched one hand, summoning the box to her. It came, engulfed in an aura of her dark spirit energy. Gently, she plucked it from the air, and set it upon the floor. She then slid down from the foot of her bed to sit in front of it. Raven stroked the silver inlaid cover for a moment, admiring the pattern of moon, sun, and stars, before removing the lid and setting it carefully aside.  
  
Once the lid was removed, she could feel the enchantment emanating from the box, all the residual magic from its previous owner, her great, great grandmother, a powerful sorceress dating back to the Middle Ages. Raven then removed a dark violet crushed velvet cloth to reveal the box's contents, a deck of fortune telling cards.  
  
Raven smiled slightly as she traced the design on the back of the top card, almost identical to the design on the box's lid. She caressed it, feeling the complex spells put into them and the magic her ancestor had left behind. She rarely used these cards because they were so powerful, they tended to tire her out quickly, but their predictions were much more precise than the weaker deck she kept in her closet. She took the deck out of its niche, not bothering to shuffle because she didn't need to, these cards shuffled themselves.  
  
Raven turned over the top card to see its front. Blank, no picture. She smiled slightly and put the card back. These weren't just plain old Tarot cards, these were the real thing. Next she fanned the cards out in an arc on the floor before her, curving it just right from practice.  
  
Now came the hard part. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, bringing up her hand to hover over the cards, slowly following the arc she had made. She reached out with her mind, and found the power of the cards, seducing herself to their magic. Now she could feel the enchantment, burning in her veins, filling her, taking over her. It took all her concentration just to remember to breathe.  
  
Once Raven was sure she had the cards under the proper control, she gave them her question. She formulated a series of pictures in her head, Robin and Starfire together. The cards understood, because she could feel the magic starting to channel somewhere else than her. She took a deep breath, her eyes still closed.  
  
Her hand hovered over the cards, and now she started to feel for the card the deck wanted her to pick. Raven moved her hand in the air, searching. There, that was the one. She opened her eyes and picked the up the card, turning it over. The blank surface was shimmering, forming a picture.  
  
A rose garden. A dirt path leading through overgrown hedges dappled with crimson, perfectly formed roses. A single rose with sharp thorns lay in the middle of the path. She frowned, thinking of the million things the roses could symbolize. But then again, it could just mean Robin would give Starfire a rose, or they might take a walk through a rose garden. The cards were often known to be literal as well as have hidden meanings.  
  
Raven closed her eyes and outstretched her hand for the next card. When she had found it she opened her eyes again, watching the front shimmer. This time it showed a picture of a white wolf with tangled fur wandering through a barren field, she got the impression it was looking for something with its nose to the ground and its eyes searching. Raven stared at it blankly for a moment. This creature the cards were showing her, he had such striking, ice blue eyes. She knew those eyes. Her mouth opened slightly, and she almost dropped the card, almost lost control. But her mind quickly reprimanded her for thinking she recognized the wolf in the picture, just a coincidence, that was all. Nothing but a coincidence, that's right, it was nothing.  
  
She swallowed the emotions and memories that were trying to fight their way out and closed her eyes to search for the next card. Raven found it after a moment. This time once the picture appeared it showed two swans meeting in a rapid. They were fighting against the current to stay together, as the water was constantly trying to push them apart. The meaning for this one was much easier to grasp. It looked like Robin and Starfire would have things going against them, things keeping them apart, but they would work hard to be together. Whether that was good or bad was difficult to tell, but then again Raven could be misinterpreting it completely.  
  
Raven blinked when she felt the pull of the cards again, they wanted her to take another card. It was rare they let her draw more than three. She reached out, finding the card they wanted her to take. When the picture appeared this time, things were a little less favorable. The cards were showing her a battle field, the armor-clad dead strewn across the landscape. Burned wagons and dead horses lay everywhere. Arrows stuck out of the ground and out of other things as well. She shuddered, seeing the tattered flags that had been dropped and forgotten. The picture had a tan tint to it, like a faded photograph. She frowned, trying to decipher what the cards were trying to tell her.  
  
But the cards were done; she could feel their power withdrawing from her. The burn left her veins and suddenly she felt empty, exhausted. Now that the cards' energy was gone, it was all she could do to get the deck back into the decorative box and then back on their shelf in her bookcase. Stumbling, she crawled into bed, deciding to wait until morning to try and string together the pictures the cards had shown her. Raven didn't even have time to crawl under the covers before sleep claimed her.  
  
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A/N: I know it's a short chapter, but better have a little now than have to wait forever, right? Just think of this as a little teaser, and if I get a lot of reviews... Maybe I'll be inclined to work a little faster... 


	3. Captured

A/N: Wow, I've had a lot more time to write lately than I thought. I'm putting out chapters faster than ever before. This is where you finally get to meet Mr. Mysterious. Can't tell you his real name yet, that'd be cheating on your part. :P  
  
Replies to Reviewers (sry, I forgot about this last chapter):  
  
Prologue reviewers:  
  
Dark: :D Thanks, Raven's backstory will continue to develop throughout the story, hope I manage to keep it as good as you say it is.  
  
Rugsrat: True, I did leave myself a lot of untied strings. Too many, I just went and enticed myself into writing more...  
  
audi katia: cool rose thingy... thanx  
  
QueenTigris: HOW DARE YOU! You stole my name! I'll have to report identity theft. j/k anyways, thanks for the review! :D  
  
EEEEEEEEEEEEEE!: I know Raven's past will be a little bit different to what is in the comic books or whatever you go by, but I haven't read the comic books. So consider this a little like an AU, if you must.  
  
Chapter 1 reviewers:  
  
Dark: *munching cookies* oooooo yummy.... thanks a lot! That's the kind of compliment that really makes a writer feel good. Raven is a difficult character, what with all the limitations she comes with. I like her because there is so much opportunity to exploit her inner thoughts... so many things that you can't get just from the TV show. Not only that, she's a cool character, whoever came up with her put a lot of thought into her character development; and her being so different from the Titans, she's kinda a difficult character to maintain, if you know what I mean. Keep reviewing! :D  
  
Tamaran Girl: Thanks! I thought I might get a flame or two for that, some stingy flamer complaining about that being out of character or something. But, if you really think about it, it's really impossible to write perfectly in-character. The whole point of a story is to draw something different out of a character, something unusual... oh geez, sry. I tend to ramble. Thanks for the review!  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans and co.  
  
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Just A Little Advice  
  
Chapter 2: Captured  
  
~*~  
  
Robin hadn't been able to sleep, even with Raven's advice he hadn't been able to relax. In fact, he was even more anxious than before. Beast Boy was already cooking a breakfast of tofu eggs when he entered the kitchen.  
  
"Yo! Breakfast is almost ready! You're just in time Robin." Beast Boy was grinning ear to ear, having beaten Cyborg to the stove.  
  
"No way! I am NOT eating that tofu stuff!" Cyborg was complaining when he came in behind Robin.  
  
"Oh, c'mon! It ain't half bad! You should try it, Cy!"  
  
"I HAVE tried it! It tastes awful, almost like Star's pudding!"  
  
"HEY!"  
  
Robin sighed and sat down at the table, too tired to try to break up the fight between Beast Boy and Cyborg.  
  
"Good morning, friends!"  
  
Robin flinched, slowly raising his gaze to the doorway where Starfire was just entering. "Er, good morning, Starfire." His words slurred from exhaustion and stress and he could just barely hold his head up correctly, much less sit straight.  
  
Starfire was instantly all over him. "Oh, Robin! Did you sleep wrongly? You do not look well."  
  
Robin could feel his cheeks starting to burn. "No, no. I—I'm fine. Really."  
  
"Very well, Robin." Starfire sat down beside her and turned her attention to the plate Beast Boy was setting down in front of them. "Oh wonderful!" She said cheerily, picking up the fork.  
  
"See? Starfire likes my tofu eggs!" Beast Boy was still arguing with Cyborg.  
  
Next thing was; Beast Boy and Cyborg were yelling at each other, perturbing Starfire. But before the alien could do anything, the two Titans were silenced with tendrils of black energy constricting their ribcages.  
  
"What a headache." Raven said as she passed, releasing Cyborg and Beast Boy once they started turning blue.  
  
"Yo! What was that for?!?" Beast Boy and Cyborg said in unison once they could breathe again.  
  
Raven's answer was monotonously sarcastic, as usual. "For my ears, you morons. You really know how to make noise, don't you?" She poured herself a cup of tea and headed for the door. But before she could reach her destination Beast Boy was shoving a plate of tofu eggs in her face.  
  
"How about some breakfast?" He said with a silly grin.  
  
"How about you get out of my way?" She replied while the eggs exploded all over him.  
  
"Aw, man! What's her problem anyway?" Beast Boy complained while trying to wipe off the tofu entrails from his face after Raven had pushed past him and disappeared down the hallway.  
  
Robin thought back to last night and his unexpected, but appreciated, meeting with Raven in the kitchen. He doubted he would let himself just forget about her slip up, but he didn't say anything except, "I guess she's just not a morning person." He shrugged.  
  
"Not a morning person?!" Cyborg exclaimed. "She's not an all day person!"  
  
Starfire blinked and turned to Robin. "What do you mean? She is not a person in the morning?"  
  
Robin sweatdropped. "Uh, it's an expression. Forget about it, Star."  
  
"Oh."  
  
~*~  
  
Beast Boy and Cyborg were turning the living room upside down looking for the clicker; that Robin purposefully hid. They'd be at it for hours and probably wouldn't even be paying attention to anything else, just what Robin needed. As for Raven, she was busy in her room.  
  
Robin took a deep breath and opened the door onto the rooftop where Starfire was already waiting for him.  
  
She turned around. "Oh, Robin. Tell me, why did you ask for me to come here? What is it that you must talk about?" She cocked her head, her emerald eyes curious.  
  
Robin swallowed and cleared his throat, closing the door behind him. "Er... There's been something I... need to tell you, Starfire." He looked down at his combat boots, hoping he wasn't blushing too noticeably. "I ahh... Well, I..." How could he start? "Um, well, I went to Raven to talk about it last night... and uh..."  
  
Starfire blinked and looked downcast. "Oh... well... what did Raven say?"  
  
Robin swallowed again. "Well, she said to just tell you straight out... and—"  
  
Suddenly Robin's beeper went off. He froze, forgetting what it meant for a split second.  
  
"Oh no! There must be trouble in the city!" Starfire was now hovering a foot off the ground. "We must get the others!"  
  
Once she had flown away, Robin sighed with relief. Saved by trouble, he could have laughed.  
  
~*~  
  
"It's Plasmus!" Beast Boy cried out when their adversary was in sight.  
  
The great ugly blob was busy ripping out a sewage system from the middle of the street. Citizens were fleeing in every direction.  
  
"Titans, GO!" Came their cue.  
  
A sonic blast soon got Plasmus's attention, only to find he was being pelted by a barrage of starbolts. With a wordless gurgling, he retaliated, covering Cyborg and an approaching rhino-shaped Beast Boy in muck.  
  
Next he squished Robin with a blob from his hand, stopping a jump kick in its tracks.  
  
"Robin!" Starfire flew to his side, only to find herself also covered in the sticky mess.  
  
"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" A nearby streetlight suddenly came to life, twisting itself around Plasmus's legs.  
  
Plasmus looked up, to see Raven, her eyes glowing eerily.  
  
"Grrrrrrraaaaaaaaagggghhhhhhhh!" He brought his arm up, catching her in the glop that should have been a hand and slamming her into the ground.  
  
The street light stopped contracting, but it was still wound around his legs. Taking advantage of Plasmus's current immobility Cyborg shot a sonic beam through his head. Beast Boy first in the form of a sparrow to get above him, and then a hippopotamus, let gravity take care of the rest.  
  
This reduced Plasmus to a pile of mush, but not for long. Instead he morphed into four different, smaller, blob-like creatures. Cyborg found himself being chased by a weird creature with a big mouth and several pairs of feet, Starfire was being chased away by an octopus, Beast Boy by a weird blob resembling Plasmus's head, and Robin was trying to fight off a snake-like creature that constantly dodged his attacks and twisted around him.  
  
"Eeeeee!" Starfire fired multiple starbolts, but the octopus creature lashed a tentacle around her foot, pulling her from the air.  
  
Beast Boy was busy trying to dodge the barrage of muck Plasmus's head was spitting at him, and Cyborg was running, trying to shoot his elusive chaser.  
  
The different parts of Plasmus were chasing the Titans away from each other. Beast Boy ran into an alley, Cyborg was running away down the street with his quick-footed follower, and Robin and Starfire were slowly backing away in the opposite direction.  
  
Suddenly, a blob of left over plasma exploded on the sidewalk, revealing Raven. She coughed and gasped for air, having not been able to breath under the glop. Her arms shook just from holding her in a sitting position, if she had had enough air in her lungs she would be cursing herself for even considering using the fortunetelling cards last night. What had she been thinking? It had obviously taken more out of her than she thought.  
  
Struggling, she managed to get to her feet without help, but her knees shook and she was sure she would collapse any minute. This was what happened when she overused her powers, yet another reason to have to keep her emotions under check. Her breathing calmed, and Raven could breathe normally. She barely had any energy left to lift her head and take in her surroundings, noting all the Titans had disappeared.  
  
She swayed and fell backwards, hoping she would be unconscious by the time she hit the hard concrete. But instead she found herself captured in a strong embrace. Her eyes closed, she no longer had the energy to keep them open. Was that Cyborg talking in her ear? Her hearing wasn't working right, the world seemed to be spinning...  
  
...Nighty night...  
  
~*~  
  
Starfire suddenly let loose an explosion of bright energy, blasting the octopus to smithereens. She turned where she hovered in the air. "Robin!"  
  
She flew over to help him and soon the plasma snake was taken down too, with a couple of starbolts and a jump kick or two.  
  
"C'mon, we gotta help the others!" Robin started running back down the street with Starfire following.  
  
When they turned the corner Beast Boy and Cyborg were triumphantly exiting an alleyway a little down the street.  
  
Cyborg was brushing off his sonic canon arm. "You owe me big time, BB!"  
  
"Look!" Starfire called out, pointing to the sidewalk. "He's got Raven!"  
  
The four Titans turned to the hooded figure trapped between them on the sidewalk. Seeing that he was being scrutinized he bent his knees slightly as if readying for battle and hugged the unconscious Raven closer to his chest. His face was hidden by a deep hood, much resembling Raven's, and he was dressed entirely in black. His ragged cloak was held around his neck with a silver brooch at his throat and it reached down to the back of his knees, shivering slightly in the breeze. He wore black leather combat boots and a shirt and pants made out of a durable, soft black fabric unknown to the Titans. He also wore a heavy leather belt with a silver buckle which held two daggers and a couple throwing knives. His arms were bare and the Titans could see on the shoulder of one muscular arm he had a tattoo of a loping white wolf.  
  
"Let her go!" Cyborg yelled, powering up his sonic cannon. While Beast Boy readied himself beside him.  
  
Strapped to the stranger's back over the short, patched cloak was a long, pitch black lacquered staff. Seeing Cyborg's canon and the other Titans readying themselves for battle, he drew it out now. He hefted it expertly in his right hand, the arm with the tattoo. The ends of the stick were reinforced with silver caps and, seeing this, Robin drew his own staff.  
  
"I SAID let her go!" Cyborg repeated.  
  
The darkly attired stranger looked back and forth between the Titans on either side of him. He lifted Raven and held her over his left shoulder, using one hand to balance her. Then he bent his knees and gripped the quarter staff, Robin instantly recognized it as a defensive stance, this guy was looking for a fight.  
  
"Titans, GO!"  
  
On their cue, the Titans attacked. Raven's captor leaped to dodge the sonic canon blast and several starbolts. Then raised his stick and slammed it down on a green tentacle that had been grabbing for his legs. Robin moved in as Beast Boy was yipping in pain and threw two birdarangs.  
  
These were dodged, but it gave Robin a chance to get in close with his staff. He grunted when he found his attack had been blocked by the stranger's own staff. So he jumped up, using his staff against the stranger's for leverage and brought his foot down on the stranger's head.  
  
He grunted and stumbled backwards but managed to recover himself in time to keep Raven from slipping off his shoulder and returning an attack to Robin. The quarter staff caught his arm which Robin had raised to throw another birdarang, causing him to drop it and clutch his smarting forearm, but when the birdarang hit the ground it exploded, knocking the Titans' leader to the ground.  
  
The new Titan enemy jumped back to dodge a charging rhino and then more starbolts. Seeing an opportunity, he turned and ran down an alleyway with the three standing Titans following him. Nearly slipping on the remains of the part of Plasmus that had been chasing Beast Boy, he reached the end of the alley, to find a dead end.  
  
"You're trapped now!" Cyborg smiled, lifting his canon.  
  
The stranger backed up to the plasma splattered brick wall, bending to one side to gently lay Raven behind a couple of garbage cans. He then took his quarter staff into both hands, falling into an offensive stance this time with one end of his stick pointing toward the three Titans blocking his path.  
  
"This is your last chance! We do not want to hurt you!" Starfire was saying, her hands already starting to glow bright green.  
  
The stranger didn't say a word, didn't move from his battle- ready pose.  
  
"Well, you heard him." Cyborg said and let the sonic blast fly.  
  
"Ruvna, Shikra, Tibre!" He yelled, holding his staff horizontal in front of him. A light blue aura formed around him and Raven, blocking Cyborg's shot completely.  
  
"Whoa, did you guys see that!?" Beast Boy exclaimed.  
  
The blue light dissipated and suddenly the stranger was on the attack. Before the Titans could react he had used his staff to knock Cyborg's feet from under him and he had pushed Beast Boy against the wall and then into a dumpster. Dodging starbolts he leaped off a trash can to get some air and knocked down Starfire. He landed above her, raising his quarter staff above his head and readying to bring it down on the dazed alien's head.  
  
"Agggggghhhhhhhhhhh!" Robin screamed as he jump kicked their hooded adversary square in the chest, knocking him onto his back, he shoved his own staff against his throat threateningly. "Who are you and what do you want?" He commanded fiercely.  
  
He started to retaliate but then Cyborg appeared and held him down. "He ASKED you a QUESTION!"  
  
The stranger shook his head in defiance, but this also caused his hood to slip back and reveal his face. The countenance that was revealed was that of a young teenage boy, if not their own age, then one or two years their senior. He had icy, light blue eyes that burned with fury and retaliation. His skin was pale and so was his shoulder length hair which was the peculiar color of silver and it reflected the midmorning light in the shadowy alleyway. He had high cheek bones and eyebrows and eyelashes of the same silvery color as his hair.  
  
Beast Boy climbed out of the garbage rubbing his head and trying to brush off the stains of who-knows-what from his costume. "Aw, man! Did it have to be a dumpster?" He looked up. "Hey, you caught him!"  
  
"Yes, and now Raven will be safe." Starfire said, coming to stare down at their defiant adversary.  
  
"Safe? With you?! You gotta be kidding me!" The teenager snarled, opening his mouth for the first time since they had met him. He tried to break from Robin's and Cyborg's grip but they held him tight. "Hey! You stay away from her, you dirtbag!" He yelled at Beast Boy who was pulling the still unconscious Raven from out behind the garbage cans.  
  
"Wha— Hey!"  
  
Suddenly the un-hooded teenager jumped up from under Cyborg and Robin, throwing them aside with a sudden burst of the same blue energy that had shielded him from the sonic blast. Moving with agility, he tossed Beast Boy aside into the garbage cans and grabbed Raven.  
  
Before anyone could even blink he was gone with a flash of more blue light, and so was Raven.  
  
"They're gone!" Starfire gasped.  
  
"Dude..." Beast Boy picked himself up, brushing off more grime. "The garbage cans again? Aw, man!"  
  
"What happened? He took Raven!" Cyborg's expression changed quickly from surprised to angry. "He took Raven!!"  
  
Robin stared silently at the place they had disappeared, grimacing. "Slade's work I bet! First Plasmus to distract us, then he sends in that guy to kidnap Raven!"  
  
"Hey, you guys, you think she'll be okay? Wherever that guy's taken her?" Beast Boy looked to Robin, the worry apparent in her face. The other Titans turned to him as well.  
  
He shrugged. "If Slade did this there's no telling, but I can bet she's in trouble."  
  
Cyborg raised his arm and started scanning for any traces of where they had gone, but he found none. They had simply disappeared. "I got nuthin' here..."  
  
Robin straightened his shoulders, going into leader mode. "Well, there's nothing we can do at the moment. We better go back to the tower and get some rest. We can't help her if we're too tired."  
  
The Titans agreed and they all headed home, their spirits somewhat dampened.  
  
~~~  
  
Several blocks away a flash of blue light marked the arrival of the stranger in an abandoned warehouse on the docks, Raven asleep in his arms. Looking around, he saw that he had lost the people who had been trying to get Raven away from him, but this certainly wasn't the kind of place he wanted Raven to wake up to. Empty old crates were everywhere, and there was a layer of dust over everything that must have been left untouched for a couple of years.  
  
His knees sagged and he could feel the exhaustion creeping up on him. He didn't have a knack for magic, just a few simple spells, so transportation spells like the one he had just used could easily tire him out. This would have to do, once he had rested he could move himself and Raven to more reasonable quarters. Besides, he had slept in places worse than this.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A/N: A good sized chapter, I had more time on my hands than I thought I would. Aren't you all wondering where Robin hid that clicker??? Review! 


	4. Together Again

A/N: Err... Hi! Uh, does anyone remember me? Heh, you know, from two years ago? Yeah, been awhile, I know. I've decided to discontinue most of my stories, because if I wanted to continue them I'd have to rewrite most of them since my writing style has changed quite a bit in the time I've been absent. But, I feel that I can still get something good out of this. I realize OC characters are never really a good idea, especially for TT, where there is such a limited number of canon characters. But, I felt it necessary for the story, since this is really more about Raven and her past (and thus her future) than anything else. So, I needed a character from before her TT times, someone who would stimulate a new awakening for her. I hope you like him.

That doesn't mean that there won't be anything about the other canons though, I'm planning a considerable amount of attention to be focused on Robin and Starfire and the development of their relationship. I don't plan for it to be simple for them, but compared to Raven's relationships of past, present, and future I fear the love of Robin and Starfire may pale. I'll work to see that that doesn't happen.

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Just a Little Advice

Chapter 3

&&&

Raven woke with a start out of the blackness of her unconscious mind. As she realized what her eyes were seeing, she wondered if she had woken up at all and was in fact still dreaming.

"Cerin," she said to the icy eyes gazing down at her.

The eyes came closer as the cloaked man leaned down to look into her face. "You okay?"

"I'm fine." She answered. Raven sat up, never taking her eyes from his face lest he disappear in that moment of her inattention. "You're alive." She said, slowly realizing that she was not fantasizing.

"Yes." He replied.

"You're here."

Cerin nodded.

Raven cocked her head. "Why?"

He seemed to take pause at that, either for reflection or surprise, Raven could not tell.

"I missed you." He said at last.

Thoughts and memories raced through Raven's half-demon mind as she attempted to grasp the situation she was currently experiencing. "Where have you been?" She almost took difficulty in holding the emotion and suffering she had felt over the years from her voice.

"I've been many places." He paused, then continued as he decided he needed to say more. "I've been looking for you."

Raven stared at him. "For how long?"

"Years," Cerin shrugged, then looked at her with his calm eyes. "Ever since I lost you."

Raven opened her mouth. She had so many questions, she could ask so many more. But, she realized she didn't need to know anything, all she needed to know was that he was here with her, at last.

Raven closed her mouth and stared at him for a long time. She took a deep breath, and calmed her mind; but at the same time, she let open a gate in her heart that she had closed and forgotten so many lonely years ago. She remembered, she hadn't forgotten a thing, all that she had shut away.

And something inside her relaxed for the first time in a long time. Raven pressed her face to Cerin's broad chest, as she had done before, and Cerin embraced her with his gentle touch.

"I missed you, too." She said into his collar bone.

Raven did not cry for joy or pain, or laugh, or smile, nor did she feel any inclination to. She simply leaned into Cerin's warm body as he stroked the back of her head, and Raven felt truly calm for the first time in years.

"STOP RIGHT THERE!"

A voice bellowed, causing them to jump apart. Cerin was on his feet in an instant, his old quarterstaff in hand. But Raven simply looked up, for she recognized the voice.

Robin descended gracefully from his place in the warehouse's rafters, landing on his feet and at the ready with his own arsenal of inventive weapons. The other Titans appeared from their own hiding places behind crates or in the shadows.

Cerin growled softly deep in his throat as he realized they were surrounded.

"We ask that you please let Raven go—" Starfire was saying.

"Release her and you will be treated courteously." Robin snarled, a birdarang raised in his fist.

"Stop it!" Raven exclaimed, the danger and power of her anger behind her voice, as she rose from the ground. "This is nonsense, I am perfectly safe and free. This is no enemy of mine." She said, placing a hand on Cerin's shoulder.

He was looking at her questioningly out of the corner of his eye, and Raven knew he would attack on the instant she motioned for him to do so, if she so wished. But Raven simply gave him a cool look, with the mental message that all was well. Cerin lowered his weapon slowly but his eyes still held suspicion.

Starfire flew to her side, instantly overjoyed and curious at the same time. "Oh, Raven! Are you well? We have been so frightened."

"I'm fine." Was her uniform reply, she watched as Robin, Beast Boy, and Cyborg ventured nearer, doubt on their faces.

"What's going on exactly?" Robin asked, his eyes still focused on Cerin.

Raven opened her mouth to reply, but closed it again, wondering what she could say. She looked at Cerin, still tense and ready for a fight. She stepped closer to him and put a hand on his shoulder. "I'd... like you all to meet Cerin Valhallo. He's... an old friend." Raven managed to get out.

Starfire gasped with pleasure, "Oh! The warrior you told me about!" She cried before flinging herself at the startled man for a hug.

Cyborg and Beast Boy were quiet, still digesting the new information. But Robin was possibly the quietest of all as he stood aside and watched Cerin flinch away from the zealous Starfire. Robin remembered the night before; and inwardly, he wondered whether he should be worried or happy for Raven.

&&&&&&&

A/N: Short, I know. But at least it's another chapter. Please, tell me what you think.


	5. Goodbye

A/N: I didn't sleep at all last night. I'm still not sleepy. I don't feel well. . Well, at least I'm writing...

Disclaimer: (Which I forgot in the last chapter, oh well, don't sue me). I own nothing except for my dear warrior stranger from Raven's past... He's mine! Really! I swear! Don't sue me!

&&&&&&&

Just a Little Advice

Chapter 4

&&&

"So, ah, Cerin," Robin said as they returned to the Tower. "I presume you'll be staying with us for a while?"

Cerin looked up from the plate of food he had raided from the refrigerator and pantry. He swallowed another monstrous shovel-full of some random not-edible-looking leftovers before answering. "I'm perfectly comfortable with staying outside, if that's alright."

Robin stared at him for a moment from across the table as the Titan's newest ally started shoveling food into his mouth again. _Really_, he could take on Cyborg with that appetite... "Uh, you mean you want to camp outside?"

Cerin shrugged. "Ah aven' sweft unter a woof faw yars." He said around a mouthful. Then he winced as if struck with a sudden pain and glanced at Raven, who was glaring from across the room. Cerin swallowed dutifully. "I was saying, I haven't slept under a roof for several years now."

Robin resisted the impulse to raise an eyebrow, but Beast Boy couldn't help but to chuckle at this.

"I really prefer the outdoors, anyway." Cerin continued, looking dubiously at the ceiling above him.

"You can sleep on the roof;" Raven said, "I'm sure you'll be comfortable there."

Cerin looked her way and paused in his eating, a mixture of emotions hidden behind his eyes as he stared at her. Though Robin tried, he couldn't discern what was going on behind the look.

Starfire, who had been standing off to the side with Raven, cocked her head to the side. "Oh, but Mr. Warrior, sir, we have many, many rooms, and lots of room for you! Surely you would like to stay where it is warm and cozy? You are most welcome." She smiled beatifically and Robin felt his stomach do something unpleasantly exciting.

Cerin shook his head. "No, really, I'd prefer the roof, thank you." Then he returned to his food.

All was silent in Titan's Tower for several moments. Then Beast Boy spoke up. "So, ah... how do you and Raven know each other exactly?"

Cerin paused and looked to Raven, who looked entirely disinterested in the conversation and was looking in another direction. Cerin looked back at Beast Boy and shrugged, then swallowed. "What are you all to Raven?" He inquired quietly, glancing at Raven as the words left his mouth as if worried he was saying the wrong thing. Raven was busy examining her nails with a studious frown.

"Friends," Robin responded instantly. "We're her friends and she is ours. Now, we deserve to know what the f—" Robin took a breath. "Why are you here, and what is Raven to you?"

Cerin glanced at Raven, who was now frowning at the group of them.

Exasperated, Robin turned to Raven. "Is this him? The guy you were talking about last night?"

Raven stiffened.

Robin scowled. "You don't have to be so secretive, you know. It's not like we'd ever hold something against you, we are your friends and accept you for who you are and... all that you have been."

Raven looked away and Cerin started to rise from his seat.

"Goddamnit, Raven!" Robin cried in frustration.

And suddenly he was lifted off his feet by a strong hand on his collar. Startled, Robin looked over the fist at his throat into the icy eyes of this stranger.

Cyborg and Beast Boy cried out in protest, jumping up from their own seats, and Starfire made a disconcerted noise.

"Put him down." Raven said bluntly.

Cerin did, if with noticeable reluctance. He turned away from Robin and the indignant Titans. "Whatever you say," He said with a sigh to the dark eyed girl.

Raven looked off to the side. "I know." She whispered.

Cerin took her slim shoulders into his hands, gently stroking the material of her cloak with one thumb. "Why did you cut your hair?" He said at last.

Raven looked up, startled. "What? My hair?" She reached up to touch her head, as if to insure they were talking about the same hair that hung around her ears.

"Yes."

Raven frowned. "Manageability."

"Oh," he said; bringing a hand up to cup her sallow cheek. He ran a finger along the delicate curve of the bone under her eye.

"A_HEM_." A throat was cleared behind them, breaking the image of solitude between Raven and Cerin.

Robin shifted on his feet as two pairs of emotionless eyes turned on him. "I'm sorry," he said abruptly. "I probably got a little out of hand there. I just... I don't like not knowing what exactly is going on." He finished with a deep breath.

Cerin shifted and only Robin could see that his grip had tightened on Raven's shoulders. "I'm here to take Raven to a safe place." He said. Raven looked off to the side. "She can't stay here much longer."

Gasps and displeased or confused reactions abounded from the other Titans.

Robin opened his mouth a moment before the words actually came out. "What do you mean? She's safe _here_. We can protect her, we're her friends and all was fine before—"

"Robin," Raven interrupted. "He's right. In fact, if I stay here much longer I'll be putting you all in danger greater than any you have experienced before."

"That can't be true!" Beast Boy cried out suddenly. "What can he do that we can't for you?" He pointed an accusing finger at Cerin, whose eyes were downcast from the gaze of anyone and was gripping Raven's shoulders with white-knuckled intensity.

"Why exactly is this a necessity?" Cyborg asked, frowning.

Raven paused. "Because, my father will be coming soon."

The four Titans paled or squeaked, respectively.

"He comes behind me." Cerin said quietly to the floor. "I came as quickly as I could, lest he find Raven before me." He raised his eyes from the tile to look at the dark girl in his hands. "It has been many years, but I am here, and now we must leave again."

Raven bit her lip, returning Cerin's look a moment before looking at her Titans. "I'm sorry," she said, "but you must accept it."

Robin's fists tightened at his sides. He had always known Raven's past was troublesome, and he had known that should it be dug up it would only cause more trouble. That was in fact the main reason he had never tried to pry into her private life. Her private life was trouble and could only cause trouble. But now her past was coming back to haunt not only Raven, but those around her. The Titans were going to lose one of their own, and he didn't like it.

"But surely, we can come with you!" Starfire cried; and all eyes turned to her.

"That won't work." Cerin said, eyes still on Raven.

Before even making the decision, Robin jumped at the chance. "But it would! We are the Titans, and the Titans stick together. We'll all come with you, and help in the best ways that we can. We'll defeat your father!" Robin finished, hardly realizing what he was saying.

"Yeah!" Beast Boy and Cyborg cried their approval and Starfire jumped for joy.

Cerin frowned.

Raven sighed. "You'd be safer here. You should stay here, protect the city and do your duty."

"Our duty is to you," Robin replied, "our friend."

Raven watched him for a quiet moment. "My father cannot be defeated, with your help or without it. You don't know what you ask for."

"We're coming with you." Robin said adamantly.

Cerin shook her shoulders slightly. "We don't have time for this."

Raven sighed. "We leave in the morning." She said resignedly.

Beast Boy and Cyborg leaped for joy, Starfire twirled in the air.

Cerin sighed. "We should leave _now_, Raven."

Raven shook her head. "I need to erase the traces of my presence from this place so my father may lose the trail. It'll take a while." She shook Cerin's hands off her shoulders. "I'll be going, get some rest."

Robin frowned internally. He wondered which was more important: holding onto a friend no matter what it took, or his dreams of heroism. He got the distinct impression he wouldn't be seeing Titan's Tower for a while.

&&&&&&&

A/N: Short, again, I know. But this is the second chapter in two days, eh? Tell me what you think.


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